Sunday, September 09, 2007

Negligent Discharge Account

So today I had a negligent discharge this evening. I got complacent and forgot that I had put two rounds of buckshot in my HD shotgun's magazine tube. I pumped it once nothing came out and I assumed that it was empty. So I decided to dry fire it. I brought it up to my shoulder and lined up the ghost ring sights and pulled the trigger.

The worst sound is when you hear a bang instead of a click.

My room smelled like gunpowder, my ears were ringing and I saw a golf ball sized hole in my mirror and I could see into my wall.

Seeing that hole and hearing that boom was the worst and most surreal moment of my life. The first thought that went through my head was, "I can't believe I just did that". The 00 buckshot did not penetrate through the house so that is a blessing.

After it happened I wanted to cry, vomit and a lot of other things all at the same time because I did not believe what I had done. I am going to keep the empty shot shell as a visible reminder of what happened today. I really thought that it would never happen to me. But further possible tragedy was averted because I had the muzzle pointed in a safe direction.

Afterwards I went for a drive to clear my mind. I don't think I will be able to sleep tonight because I am so keyed up. I know I screwed up and I am forever going to be more careful. So that is my story...

13 Comments:

Michael said...

I teach basic firearm safety at a local range. Before one class began I was sitting up front speaking to a student when we all heard the BANG. Turns out an off duty Sheriff's Deputy had brought in a revolver, dumped the cylinder and given it to another person to "test the trigger." The other person took the revolver "he just saw the other man unload" and began pressing the trigger to feel how smooth it was. Press number two or three resulted in the BANG. Turns out when the deputy "emptied" the cylinder, one round got hung up and neither man noticed it. Check - and then check again! One second of cheap insurance.

No, the only way to be sure is to visually check every location a cartridge could be in the firearm. In the case of a pump shotgun that would be the magazine, the carrier, and the chamber. Merely cycling the action can dislodge a stuck round and chamber it.

has happened to me and will happen again, the important thing is that most of all, it was pointed in a safe direction. my wife and both of my daughters have been taught all guns are loaded, treat them accordingly. We shoot them, we handle them, and we treat them wwith the respect they deserve because they have deadly potential. I have had ND's ...because of this or that, but fortunately the firearm was alwaays pointed in a safe direction.

"When I was in the army, they taught us to clear the action by racking the cocking handle three times."

I've always done the same thing, though no one had actually taught me to do it. I've always been "ridiculously anal" about gun safety (someone else's words, hence the quotes).

In the past, I had commented on some gun forums that motorcycles and guns have one thing in common: You've either made a mistake (accident/Neg. Disch.), or it's somewhere around the corner. Saying that brought a firestorm of criticism down on me from people that I was just anti-gun, and if they felt that way, they wouldn't even carry.

I tend to think that if you aren't always aware, every time that you are holding a firearm, that you're one careless mistake away from a negligent discharge, you probably shouldn't be holding the firearm in the first place.

This isn't a criticism of Glock 22, if it comes across that way. It's just a perfect time to remind people that, when it comes to fireamrs, "It can't happen to me" tends to ensure that it soon will.

Everyone, please be "excessively safe", so we don't give the antis more arguments for why we shouldn't have our guns.

Links to this post:

Xavier is a Registered Nurse who specialized in complex wound care. He has practiced for over fourteen years in his community. He often provided nursing service in areas where law enforcement refused to enter without back-up. Xavier now works in surgery.
Xavier has been an avid shooter for over 30 years. He strongly supports the 2nd Amendment, opposes gun control of any sort, and carries a weapon 24 hours a day.
Xavier is known on various internet gun forums as XavierBreath. He is married with three children, and is moderated by an apathetic one eyed cat, a goofy Golden Retriever, and a stalwart German Shepherd Dog. One day, he hopes to be deserving of them all.

Domari Nolo

Xavier can still be emailed at
treatmewithbenignneglect@gmail.com
He might read your email.
He might delete it on sight.
He might publish it and comment on it.

The Five Rules of Concealed Carry
1. Your concealed handgun is for protection of life only.
2. Know exactly when you can use your gun.
3. If you can run away -- RUN!
4. Display your gun, be prepared to go to jail.
5. Don't let your emotions get the best of you.